To say that the Call of Juarez: The Cartel was a disappointment would be an understatement. The developer, Techland, wanted to take the series in a new, modern direction. Instead, they may as well have driven the series off a… Continue Reading →

To say that the Call of Juarez: The Cartel was a disappointment would be an understatement. The developer, Techland, wanted to take the series in a new, modern direction. Instead, they may as well have driven the series off a cliff and set the crashed remains on fire.

But everyone deserves a second chance, especially the team that also made the fantasticDead Island. They have another try at the series and went back to its roots in the Wild West. I had a chance to check out Call of Juarez: Gunslinger at Ubisoft’s Digital Day recently. The first-person shooter is scheduled to be a digital-only release on the Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network and the PC.

LEVEL NARRATION: This entry tells the story of a restless bounty hunter, who returns to his hometown. While at the saloon, the locals recognize him. Curious, they ask what he’s been up to all these years, and the Gunslinger weaves tales of his life in West. As he narrates, gamers play through the scenarios. It’s similar to what Supergiant Games did with Bastion.

In the level that was demoed, the Gunslinger meets up with Billy the Kid. Product manager Aymeric Evennou says the team researched the outlaws and gunmen of the time period and Call of Juarez: Gunslinger grounds its story in that history. Players will meet Billy the Kid, the Barton Brothers and others and in the process learn a little bit about what makes them so famous or infamous depending on your perspective.

Visually, the shooter looks good. Techland was aiming for a comic book art style in its cut scenes and theme. That effort bleeds through parts of the user interface. For example, if players are shot, they’ll see bullet holes picture the screen like it was made out of paper.

The saloon after a gunfight.

RUNNING WITH BILLY THE KID: As the Gunslinger returns with supplies to Billy the Kid, he discovers that his friend is in trouble and starts shooting up the posse sent to round up the famed outlaw. The combat is fast-paced and arcadelike. Players are scored on their kills as they tear through the gunfights. If players fill up the meter with the stylish shots (ie. head shots), they can go into a concentration mode that slows the world down and lets the Gunslinger eliminated multiple foes easily.

The scoring that players is used as experience points for the character progression built in game. The points help buy upgrades like faster reloads, auto targeting and scavenging for guns.

The last new element is something called Sense of Death. It’s a unique skill that lets the Gunslinger avoid a bullet that’s aimed at him preserving his life. When a potential killshot is fired, the world goes into slow-mo and the move lets players dodge the bullet with his name on it.

The locales in the game are varied.

A TWIST TO STORYTELLING: One of the more interesting things Techland does with the narration is slip in some banter between the Gunslinger and the saloon locals. They’ll ask him questions and be skeptical about parts of his tale and that has an effect on how the levels play out. I imagine an unreliable narrator can exaggerate the number of men he killed in a shoot out and that changes up a scenario so players have to go through it in a slightly different way.

From what I’ve seen so far, Call of Juarez: Gunslinger looks to be a return to form for the series. In terms of gameplay, it doesn’t do anything revolutionary but the style of narrative has potential to play mind games, some smart level design and ultimately something fresh for players.